and in pennsylvania they're triaging patients in parking lot tents. earlier nbc's nancy snyderman visited saint barnabas hospital in the pros where they almost have more patients than they can handle. >> reporter: what's the status today? >> well, right now, compared to last year at this time, we've seen three times as many flu patients as all of last year. >> reporter: is it fair to say you're overflowed? >> i'd say, yes, head overflow. >> officials say the outbreak likely hasn't peaked and we're not halfway through the flu season. doctors are reminding people that getting a flu shot is the best prevention. >> the white house said it's possible no u.s. troops will remain in afghanistan after 2014. a so-called zero option that remove all u.s. troops by the end of next year would be considered according to deputy national security adviser.

"the washington post" reports some officials are pushing for as few as 2,500 arguing a smaller force would be the best way to end the costly unpopular war. president karzai has a four day meeting with president obama that starts next week. >> so sobering news from the national oceanic and atmospheric administration. 2012 was the hottest year on record in the lower 48 states. with an average temperature at 55.3 degrees. now that shattered the previous record set in 1998 by a full degree while the majority of the country saw above average temperatures including las vegas and boise, cities like los angeles and seattle saw below average readings. 2012 was the second worst year for extreme weather events. human activity especially the burning of fossil fuels is contributing to changes in the u.s. climate. today, the debate over what to do over gun violence continues in washington with the launch of vice president's biden's task force.

yesterday, gabrielle giffords marked the two-year anniversary of the shooting which she narrowly survived by joining the call for more action. nbc's tracie potts joins us live with the details. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: richard, good morning. congresswoman giffords marking the occasion with a push for gun safety. she's going around the country saying we need to take a closer look at the laws on the books. the white house making a greater effort to strengthen them. tod today we'll see vice president biden sitting down with gun advocates on whether or not washington should get involved. tomorrow a big meeting at the white house with the nra. vice president biden out front on this one as well. but the big question will they be able to get anything done here on capitol hill?

with fiscal cliff part two and the debt and debt ceiling and lots of discussion about that, budget cuts, spending cuts possibly coming up the top republican on the nature side they may not get to gun control until the spring. richard. >> a lot of political capital will be spent on those issues. thank you so much. >> more turbulence for boeing's dreamliner. a fuel leak on a 787 forced it to cancel takeoff and return to the gate. one day later, a different plane also at logan caught fire. it was empty at the time. united airlines, the only american airier to operate the dreamliner said it has ordered inspections of all of its 787s. it's not a serious problem given the high-tech plane but they warned it could still undermine consumer confidence.

the government is calling for an urgent review of the nation's arctic offshore drilling practices in the wake of a series of missteps voflg the shell oil company. this week's grounding of a shell oil rig off the coast of alaska is just the latest in a string of blunders zaents involving the company's ship and support equipment. the 60-day assessment could halt or scale back plans to open alaska's arctic waters to oil exploration. >> some new figures from the u.s. census bureau more u.s. citizens are on the move to find a better life and doing it a faster rate. 3.9% of the population moved to a different county in 2011. that's the highest level since before the recession began. up from 3.5% in 2009 and 2010. experts say the increase could signal a healthier economy with more job opportunities and an improved real estate outlook and that the worst of the recession may be over. we sure hope so. now for a look at the weather,

here's nbc's meteorologist bill karins. people moving into better weather areas? >> or people like me where the weather is worse. >> there you go. >> good morning, everyone. let me show you what we're dealing with this morning. rainfall has added up in the last 48 hours. one shot on monday. little bit of rain yesterday. now we're up just about two inches olympia, seattle over an inch of rain. portland didn't get quite as much and didn't rain at all in yakama. yesterday we dealt with the warm front. now it's the cold front located over the top of seattle. heavy downpour right there. snow at the higher elevations. snow levels will come down now as the cold front goes through and the cooler air moves in behind it. lots of clouds, good moisture feed with this one. this storm will have a little punch to it as it goes over the rockies. enough cold air, higher elevations of idaho, montana, dakotas some snow. utah mountains get snow and high

country in nevada. as far as the cascades go a little bit maybe six to 12 near seattle maybe three to six there between portland and medford. in the mountains not down on i-5. today's forecast we got the rain and notice at the high elevations. that doesn't go into southern california. that's a look at your national washington state that rain will be with you most of the day. so it looks like the cold air, now we get the storm out, all the cold air will be spilling into the west. >> thanks a lot. well, what's holding up tax returns? the debt ceiling fix that fits in your pocket. and the new year's dish that will definitely break the bank. plus, could your favorite drink be making you feel lousy? you're watching "early today."

is >> here are some of the stories we're watching for you. the united nations says about 1 million syrians are going hungry because of difficulties getting supplies into conflict zones. the u.n.'s world food program is handing out rations to about 1.5 million people in syria every month, but 1 million more are still in need. in australia, more than 130 fires are burning near sydney in new south wales. and authorities are warning of a catastrophic fire threat. more than 40 of the fires are burning out of control. temperatures may hit 109 degrees fahrenheit today. it is summer there. those extreme temperatures have forced australia's weather bureau to add new colors to its heat map. deep purple there, that's for temperatures up from 122 to 125 degrees. and magenta is for temperatures up to 129.2. wow. >> national cathedral in washington, d.c. will start hosting same sex weddings. the decision came after same

gender ceremonies became legal in the district of columbia and neighboring maryland. here's an early look at one of your top health headlines. a new study finds sweetened drinks and depression. the risk was higher for people who drank diet versions of these beverages. on the other hand, coffee drinkers had a slightly lower risk of depression. >> now to wall street. the dow closed at 13 rrks 328 after dropping 55 points yesterday. the s&p fell four. the nasdaq lost seven. overseas the nikkei gained 70 points today while the hang seng rose 107 on a wednesday. last night alcoa delivered it's unofficial kick-off for the fourth quarter earning season. the aluminum maker was up after

late trading thanks time proving global demand. oil dipped below $93 a barrel this morning on news that the euro zone unemployment is at its highest level since 1999. satellite tv provider dish network made a bid for clearwire despite the current deal to sell it self to sprint. speculation is swirling that a new cheeper version of apple's iphone may be in the works as the company struggle tolls regain ground in the smartphone wars. the "wall street journal" reports a plastic shell could replace a pricier aluminum casing that it has right now. 14% of world wide smartphone shipments came from apple compared to samsung's 31%. fisher price is recalling about 800,000 rock and play sleepers due to the risk of mold exposure. early birds will have to wait for their tax returns this year. the irs announced it will not begin taking 2012 filings until

january 30th, more than a week later than usual. that's due to delays tied to the fiscal cliff deal. meanwhile, you may have heard about an idea getting some currency shall we say online that could solve the nation's latest fiscal crisis, the debt ceiling. a white house petition to mint trillion dollar platinum coins has gotten nearly 7,000 signatures in one week. now it's estimated here a coin really worth a trillion dollars would be the size of a solid platinum 747. by weight of course. on the other hand if you want to go broke in the new year one new york restaurant has a four course meal priced at $2,013. it comes with two pounds of lobster, truffle, wine and a limited edition versaci plate. heading down under, the name under the golden arches will not be mcdonald's. in honor of australia day it

will be changed to macca's. a bull on the loose gives a traffic cop the scare of a lifetime but the potentially painful reason why rex is hoping mark sanchez ups his game next season. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. florida police officers looked more like rodeo clowns as they

tried to haul in three bulls on interstate 75. the loose livestock trampled one officer after a traffic accident freed them from their trailer. authorities captured two of the animals, but unfortunately one that ran off had to be put down. well, this next one is hard to watch a brazen thief tossing an 80-year-old woman to the ground as she rips her purse away. dallas police released the video of the december robbery hoping for leads on the suspect. more than $200 was stolen from that victim. a new jersey man's climb to the top of a hurricane-battered sandy roller roaster, hoping to shine a spotlight on recovery efforts. he unfurled a flag. police arrested him as soon as he came down. >> in sports we start with lance armstrong. he'll talk with oprah winfrey about his allegations using performance-enhancing drugs. the "new york times" reported he is considering admitting the use

of drugs but his attorney denies that. the doping charges led to him being stripped of his seven tour de france titles. in the nba lakers point guard steve nash reached a new milestone, 10,000 assists and still counting. nash is only the fifth nba player to do that. congratulations to you. a tale of two cities and twin brothers as rob ryan was fired as defensive coordinator of the dallas cowboys. in new york the jets announce md his twin brother rex ryan will keep his job as head coach. ryan said if sanchez does not play well next season quote that number will change. just ahead, kim and kanye's newmantion and which diva will perform for president obama at the inauguration. "breaking dawn" part two is

breaking some records but not the kind that film makers want. you're watching "early today."

back to "early today" on this wednesday pornography. storm moving through the northwest. cold front will slice through behind it. colder air will move in through much of the west. all stormy weather is locked in the intermountain west. significant snows for all the ski countries over the next 24 to 48 hours maybe all the way out to friday. here's the forecast. look at tomorrow. tomorrow the colder air arrives with it, chance of snow in salt

lake city, boise to billings. chance of snow showers in the cascades and some showers may die with that front down los angeles and vegas with a chance of some light wet weather not a lot in those areas. so all the stormy weather will remain in the west. >> let's talk about stormy weather. in los angeles. miley cyrus tweeting a photo that makes taylor swift jealous. in bed with a life-size cut out of styles. miley's fiancee may have to have a few words with that cut out. ain't saying much for now. baby kimye is going to have a pretty swanky nursery as kim kardashian and kanye west have purchased an $11 million mansion some bell air, the couple is planning on making the home bigger. >> imagine baby proofing that thing. >> "usa today" reports beyonce

will sing the national anthem at president obama's inauguration later this month. both she and her husband were outspoken supporters of the president during the 2012 campaign. a great concert. south korea sensation will make his commercial debut at the super bowl starring in an ad promoting pistachios. >> how do they have enough money for $3 million. for the 33rd july razzi awards includes "that's my boy" and "battleship." "breaking dawn part two" got worst picture and worst screen couple. if they were to win all 11 they would be the highest ever. >> adam sandler is good for a couple. >> he has the record with 10 last year. >> i still have to rent that. >> they are all good classic

movies. there might be some pride. >> this comes to us from memphis, tennessee where hundreds celebrated the birth of rocknroll royalty. public officials and fans flocked to tennessee to mark presley's birthday. they cut an enormous cake. one fit for the king. i'm richard lui and this is "early today" just your first stop. day today on your nbc station.

one documentary crew is finally putting a face to the name. these pictures of a live giant squid were released by the discovery channel and japanese broadcaster nhk. the stills come from stunning new deepwater footage capturing the first and only images of a giant squid still in its natural habitat. the same crew previously record a giant squid caught in a fishing line caught in 2006. one new record in india is sure to wake the neighbors. more than 15,000 people came together in northeast india to set the record for the largest ensemble of coal drummers. participants drummed for 15 minutes. the new record will be recognized by the indian-asian guinness record books there. heard all around the world. in sweden, an ice bath might not seem so appealing when it's by surprise. an elk out for a morning stroll, unwillingly took an icy dip when it fell through a pool cover and

into the water. emergency crews had to use both a harness and a ladder to free the elk. no word on how much time the animal spent in the cold water before rescue teams came there. with. bet he was awake after that one. >> he should have chosen the heated pool next door. time for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day on nbc. the u.s. supreme court will hear arguments on whether police can force suspected drunk drivers to have blood drawn. at issue is whether a blood test constitutes an unreasonable search. which is prohibited by the fourth amendment. the world's oldest underground rail celebrates a milestone. the london tube opened in 1863 to help alleviate overcrowded streets. we know that here in new york. and another birthday across the pond. catherine, the duchess of cambridge, celebrates her 31st birthday. duchess kate is expected to spend her birthday with family. happy birthday to her.

all day long stay on top of the stories and the best political analysis on msnbc. tonight, be sure to watch "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. and finally on the "today" show. matt goes one-on-one with new jersey governor chris christie about the state of the republican party and a possible presidential run in 2016. and the girlfriend of alabama's quarterback is speaking out after comments made about her during the national championship game went viral. so pictures to boot. keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm richard lui. and for bill karins, thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a terrific wednesday.

a bay area museum burglarized for the second time in two months. what the thieves took and what the city is doing today to try to get it back. >> plus, an unusual settlement with the family of two of the victims of the san bruno explosion. we'll tell you what pg & e must do now. >> and barry bonds finds out if e he will be inducted into the baseball hall of fame. >> now a live look over san francisco. checking out the bay bridge on this wednesday, january 9. this is "today in the bay." >> announcer: from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." >> it is 4:30 on the nose. good morning. i'm john kelly. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. let's check the forecast with christina